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TAMPA – Darryl Strawberry has 2 million reasons not to complain about getting shoved to the back burner yet again, a practice of which the Yankees never seem to tire.

Strawberry hits home runs and Chili Davis hits mostly singles, yet Chili has the team made and Strawberry must audition in left field, or so goes the company line.

The Yankees already have Ricky Ledee, Chad Curtis and Shane Spencer to overload left field. Three’s a crowd, four is a joke. Strawberry’s chances of making the 25-man roster for Opening Night have nothing to do with impersonating Barry Bonds in left. They have everything to do with economics.

It’s not whether you start the game, but whether you’re there to finish it. Same goes for a season. The prediction here is Strawberry won’t make the Opening Night roster, but will play a huge role for the Yankees before the century turns. Why should this season be any different?

George Steinbrenner, out of fondness for Strawberry and fear of getting publicly hammered for turning his back on a cancer patient, guaranteed Strawberry $2.5 million for 1999. At the time, Steinbrenner wasn’t counting pennies.

That was before the Yankees lost salary arbitration cases to Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. General manager Brian Cashman gambled the Yankees would be like every other club in baseball this past winter and would win the arbitration cases. He turned down mid-point settlement offers from both agents. If the Yankees had won both cases the two home-grown stars would have made a combined $6.2 million. Instead, they will earn $9.25M.

That’s $3.05 million. The payroll expanded another $2.5 million when they dealt for Roger Clemens.

Strawberry’s $2.5 million salary only counts against the luxury tax for the time he spends in the major leagues. If he spends the entire season in pinstripes, the Yankees will pay $800,000 in taxes on him. If he spends half the season, the figure will be $400,000.

Big deal? It is to Steinbrenner these days. That’s why he sent two advance scouts home. That’s why a few front office employees who normally spend the entire spring training in Florida are on flights home today.

The Boss is cutting corners where he can and Strawberry represents a convenient potential for savings. He’s still a dangerous hitter who can help them, but until May at least, he is also a player who must take off every Saturday, the day after he undergoes chemotherapy.

Since the Yankees decided Davis doesn’t have to earn his spot as the DH and the job is his to lose, Strawberry isn’t a perfect fit. If Davis is injured or ineffective, Strawberry becomes an integral part of the Yankees, again.

His patience is being tested again, and so far Strawberry is up to the challenge. He continues to say all the right things.

“I’m not going to cry,” Strawberry said. “Somewhere down the line they’re going to need me. I just have to stay focused and stay ready.”

And he even has to go along with the “Can he or can’t he play left field?” charade.

“I guess they’ll find somewhere for me to do something,” he said. “If they think I can hit, I’m quite sure they’ll find somewhere for me to play.”

Strawberry can still hit. The Yankees took batting practice on Field 2 before last night’s game against the Tigers, who were working out on the main field. That ovation the Tigers heard was for Strawberry from the all the bodies pressed against the fence. Strawberry hammered five consecutive balls over the center field fence. Gasps, claps, cheers. The usual.

If Steinbrenner had his nose pressed against the fence and his ears open to the ovation, he might have considered forcing the issue. Probably not, though. Not yet, anyway. He seems to be rather enjoying this austerity kick and since he’s paying Chili Davis $4.9M, he will want to see if there is any power left in the switch-hitter’s bat.

Look for it to go something like this for Strawberry: He starts the season on the disabled list, undergoes a brief minor league tuneup and is activated sometime in mid-May to make his dramatic return from cancer before a sellout crowd against a poor draw such as the White Sox.

Steinbrenner, who helped keep the bill collectors at bay for Strawberry, saves $200,000 in luxury taxes, makes a nice thick wad of bills on Strawberry’s gate appeal and Strawberry gives the Yankees a little more juice toward the bottom of the lineup.